variants
or axe
as in dismissal
the termination of the employment of an employee or a work force often temporarily
the company was hemorrhaging money, so 700 employees would soon be given the ax
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
variants
or axe
as in to sack
to let go from office, service, or employment
the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ax
Ryan Gaydos Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Apr. 2026
There were no skeletons at the bottom, just various farm implements (an axe, a bark spud used for peeling bark off fresh tree trunks, a chain, and various minor trinkets).
—Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 26 Apr. 2026
The biggest headline in Europe this week was German airline Lufthansa axing 20,000 flights through October.
—Jordan Blum, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ax
Noun
Suns star Devin Booker appeared to have an ax to grind against the officiating following the game.
—Ryan Gaydos Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Apr. 2026
There were no skeletons at the bottom, just various farm implements (an axe, a bark spud used for peeling bark off fresh tree trunks, a chain, and various minor trinkets).
—Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
Verb
The Boston Red Sox’s house cleaning, where manager Alex Cora and five others on the coaching staff were axed amid a poor start to the 2026 MLB season, has one veteran in the clubhouse ticked off.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 26 Apr. 2026
The biggest headline in Europe this week was German airline Lufthansa axing 20,000 flights through October.
—Jordan Blum, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ax
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ax
Noun
-
The write-off trap There’s a specific kind of institutional damage that happens when hiring managers and leaders respond to the stare with dismissal rather than diagnosis.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
23 Apr. 2026
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Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel is speaking out as a wide-ranging review of the football program unfolds after Sherrone Moore's dismissal.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Hiring Liam Rosenior, sacked on Wednesday after just 107 days in charge, was a big error of judgement.—
Simon Johnson,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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John Franklin-Myers, who loved talking, sacking and eating Uncrustables, left as a free agent to the Titans.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The Red Sox have issued eight fewer challenges than any other team, but Alex Cora, who was fired on Saturday, said before his firing that he wasn’t bothered by the low rates.—
Zack Meisel,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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According to the space startup, this included a record-breaking 300-second burn—the longest duration hot firing of any RDRE engine yet.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
O’Neal, the daughter of four-time NBA champion and Naismith Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, entered the portal April 14 after two seasons at UF; former head coach Kelly Rae Finley was fired by administration in March after five seasons at the helm.—
Caroline Makauskas,
The Orlando Sentinel,
28 Apr. 2026
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The next night, Russia fired nineteen ballistic missiles, twenty-five cruise missiles, and six hundred and fifty-nine drones.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In Cambodia, worker groups spoke of furloughs, cut shifts and job losses.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
28 Apr. 2026
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One official in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis described an operation functioning at roughly 80% capacity, with employees rotating in and out of furlough status week to week — disrupting even routine information-sharing and leaving critical gaps in coordination.—
Nicole Sganga,
CBS News,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Robinson was among 425 volunteers spreading out from four different locations on Saturday throughout Waukegan, removing trash from the lakefront, the city’s downtown and its neighborhoods, ending eight days of active environmental stewardship during the city’s fifth-annual Earth Week cleanup.—
Steve Sadin,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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Creamy, hydrating cleansers maintain the moisture barrier while still removing dirt and makeup effectively.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Kansas City Star,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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That lawsuit, along with a countersuit by the PGA Tour, was dismissed a year later.—
Tim Reynolds,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
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There’s too much effort, too much time, and too much sincerity apparent behind this film to dismiss it outright.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Mary Brown retired after coaching boys and girls volleyball in the district for 19 years, including the past eight years with the Knights’ boys team.—
Jeff Vorva,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
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But, after the couple retired and migrated south to Mexico City, Hurst dove back into photography with gusto, until his death, from cancer, in 2023.—
Chris Wiley,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ax.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ax. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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